‘We won't wait': Brutal reality of life without light rail for Palm Beach
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Mayor Tom Tate warns council will dig up the southern stretch of the Gold Coast Highway to the border for critical infrastructure work, regardless of whether the light rail proceeds.
Worn-out underground infrastructure, including pipes, must be replaced in the next few years in Palm Beach, Currumbin and Tugun, he says, something that had been planned to occur during construction of the multi-billion dollar tram extension to the Gold Coast Airport.
Artist impression of Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4 between Tugun and Coolangatta, including Gold Coast Airport and the NSW border. Picture: Department of Transport and Main Roads.
But with the project's future in doubt and under State Government review, city leaders have used Friday's council budget to underline the critical need for the tram to be built promptly, saying even a delay until after the 2032 Olympics would force the roads to be dug up twice – once for the pipes and again years later for the light rail
Mr Tate followed his budget speech by urging the state government to back in the trams, saying he didn't want to have to perform a 'double-bypass' on the heart of Palm Beach.
'While the state government does their review and consultation, we need to continue planning for underground infrastructure upgrades along the southern end of the Gold Coast no matter what and there is $10m already allocated for (upgrades to) kilometres and kilometres of water pipes, sewer pipes, storm water pipes under the highway,' he said.
'If the (state) report comes back that we have to move and the state wants to delay light rail Stage 4, we won't wait (because) we will have to go and rectify (the) sewer and water now.
Mayor Tom Tate and Deputy Mayor Mark Hammel discussing the budget. Picture: Andrew Potts
'It means you've got to dig it up twice, double expenditure and the pain of opening the roads up in Palm Beach and that's what (critics) don't understand.'
Council committed $13.8m to progressing light rail Stage 4 in its 2024-25 budget last year but did not list specific new funding for it in this year's budget.
However, budget documents do list progressing the business case on the project as a key action for improving connectivity in the city the next financial year, subject to state government approval.
The long-planned light rail stage 4 from Burleigh Heads to the border via the airport has paused as the new state government kept its pre-election promise to review the route and perform community consultation, which closed in early May.
It is not known when the results of this will be released.
Business leaders across the city have backed the extension as essential as the Gold Coast population soars.
Artist impression of Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 4 between Tugun and Coolangatta, including Gold Coast Airport and the NSW border. Picture: Department of Transport and Main Roads.
Deputy Mayor and city planning boss Mark Hammel said delays and uncertainty around the future of stage 4 were having a serious knock-on effect on the council's own planning for transport infrastructure for the future.
'It's the state government that sets the regional plans projections of the city's future population and it also sets projection of where they expect most that population to be and the coastal strip from Paradise Point to Coolangatta is where the largest proportion of this city's future population will go, light rail or no light rail,' he said.
'We're looking to make investments in infrastructure to support that population growth and the investment the state government needs to make is in public transport to allow that sustainable growth to occur down there, so it is a concern.
'They need to come through with investment in public transport and while Stage 4 is the next (element), that's not the end of it – it's just the next (piece) in a series of projects to deliver the city's long-term public transport network with the heavy rail and the light rail as the two spines connected by east-west links.
'The frustration is the longer we delay this next stage, we waste precious time and energy and increasing costs to see it delivered with every year goes by.
'That's also having an effect on those east-west connections which open up other opportunities for not just population growth but connecting the entire city to high frequency public transport.'
It comes weeks after an 'Enterprising City' report, by KPMG, underlined the critical role of light rail in the city's future as it looked forward to 2030 and the city's economy as it evolves from a tourism town to a modern metropolis.
'Longer term, stage 4 of the light rail from Burleigh to the Airport and investments related to the 2032 Olympic Games will further enhance the Gold Coast's attractiveness,' it reads.
'The Gold Coast has always had an unbeatable lifestyle, but the continued creation of highly-skilled jobs and investment in world-class infrastructure truly makes it a global city.'
andrew.potts@news.com.au
Originally published as Gold Coast light rail Stage 4: Brutal reality of life without tram extension to Coolangatta via Gold Coast Airport
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